"God Bless the Child" | ||||
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Single by Shania Twain | ||||
from the album The Woman in Me | ||||
B-side | ||||
Released | October 26, 1996 | |||
Recorded | 1994 (album version) 1996 (single version) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:49 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | Robert John "Mutt" Lange | |||
Shania Twain singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Shania Twain - God Bless The Child (Official Music Video)" on YouTube | ||||
Music video | ||||
"Shania Twain - God Bless The Child (With Banjo)" on YouTube |
"God Bless the Child" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country music artist Shania Twain. It was released on October 26,1996 as the eighth and final single from her sophomore studio album The Woman in Me (1995). The album version was solely written by Twain and the single version was co-written by Mutt Lange. The album version is more a poem than a song,completely done a cappella. A country version and an alternate version without the banjo were later released for airplay. "God Bless the Child" is one of Twain's few songs to have a major gospel music influence.
"God Bless the Child" was the least successful single from The Woman in Me,failing to crack the top 40 at US country radio and only peaking at number 7 at Canada country radio. It was included on Twain's Come on Over Tour usually accompanied by a local choir,and on Australian and Asian tour editions of the Come On Over album. All singles sales from the United States were donated to Second Harvest/Kids Cafe,and from Canada to Breakfast for Learning. Twain performed the song live at the 1996 Country Music Association Awards.
Entertainment Weekly gave the song a fairly favorable review,giving it a B grade and saying "while her sentiments are pretty naive,her pipes sound plenty experienced" and that Twain gives "enough passion to make us temporarily forget her pinup looks". [1]
The music video for "God Bless the Child" was shot in Nashville,Tennessee and directed by Larry Jordan. It was filmed on October 3,1996,and debuted on October 26,1996,on Country Music Television. The video features two choirs. One included the Fisk University Jubilee Singers and the second was a local performing arts choirs singing along with Twain in a hangar at the Nashville airport. Two versions of the video were released,one with the banjo included in the audio for country stations,another without for pop and international stations. The "banjo version" video is available on Twain's DVD The Platinum Collection .
"God Bless the Child" is one of Twain's least-viewed videos on YouTube,with just over 3.4 million views as of October 2020.
"God Bless the Child" debuted on the Billboard Hot Country Singles &Tracks chart the week of November 30,1996 at number 74. The song spent 9 weeks on the chart and climbed to a peak position of number 48 on January 11,1997,where it remained for one week. "God Bless the Child" became her lowest peaking single on the chart and one of her shortest runs on the chart. It did however,top the Country Singles Sales chart for one week. Despite failure at country radio,"God Bless the Child" became Twain's fourth appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 where it peaked at number 75. It also reached number 50 on the Hot 100 Singles Sales chart.
"God Bless the Child" debuted on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart the week of November 25,1996 at number 75,the highest debut of the week. The song would go on to peak at number seven on the week of January 20,1997,seven weeks later. This song and "Home Ain't Where His Heart Is (Anymore)" marked the only singles from The Woman in Me to miss the top spot at country radio in Twain's home country. On the sales-only Canadian Singles Chart however,the song was a success,topping the chart for nine non-consecutive weeks and spending 38 weeks in total on that chart.
US Single [2]
Canada Maxi-CD [3]
US cassette single
Chart (1996–2002) | Peak position |
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Canada (Nielsen SoundScan) [4] | 1 |
Canada Country Tracks ( RPM ) [5] | 7 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [6] | 75 |
US Hot Country Songs ( Billboard ) [7] | 48 |
US Top Country Singles Sales ( Billboard ) [8] | 1 |
Chart (2001) | Position |
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Canada (Nielsen SoundScan) [9] | 153 |
Chart (2002) | Position |
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Canada (Nielsen SoundScan) [10] | 149 |
Chart (1990s) | Position |
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Canada (Nielsen Soundscan) [11] | 11 |
The Woman in Me is the second studio album by Canadian country singer-songwriter Shania Twain and her first to be produced by long-time collaborator and then-husband Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Released on February 7, 1995, it went on to become her biggest-selling recording at the time, selling 4 million copies by the end of the year, and was eventually certified 12× Platinum by the RIAA on December 1, 2000, for 12 million shipments throughout the United States. The album has sold an estimated 20 million copies worldwide. It was ranked number 8 on CMT's list of 40 Greatest Albums in Country Music in 2006. The album is credited with having influenced the sound of contemporary country music. Eight singles were released from the album for its promotion, including "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?", "Any Man of Mine", "(If You're Not in It for Love) I'm Outta Here!" and "You Win My Love", with each accompanied by a music video.
Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album by Canadian country-pop singer Shania Twain, released on November 8, 2004, by Mercury Nashville. The album contains seventeen of Twain's top ten hits, including all of her seven number one hits on the Hot Country Songs. Excluded from the track list is Twain's self-titled debut album, of which no songs were included. Some songs are included in their pop versions such as "That Don't Impress Me Much" and "I'm Gonna Getcha Good!".
"I Ain't No Quitter" is a song by Canadian country-pop singer Shania Twain. It was released on May 2, 2005 to country radio and physically in Europe on July 12, 2005 as the third and final single from her first compilation album Greatest Hits (2004). Like mostly all of her discography at the time, the song was written by Twain and then-husband Robert John "Mutt" Lange, who also produced the track. "I Ain't No Quitter" lyrically is about Twain sticking around with an overconfident and brash man. The song is regarded as a fan favorite among Twain's discography.
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"You're Still the One" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Shania Twain for her third studio album Come On Over (1997). The song was inspired by criticism of Twain's relationship with her then-husband and producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange and depicts her celebrating their marriage despite the difficulties and differences between the two. Written by Twain and Lange, it is a piano-driven country pop ballad incorporating guitar, organ, and mandolin. Mercury Records released "You're Still the One" to U.S. contemporary hit radio stations on January 13, 1998, as the album's first pop radio single. The song was later serviced to U.S. country radio stations as the third single from Come On Over on February 13, 1998.
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Canadian singer Shania Twain has released six studio albums, three compilation albums, three remix albums, one box set, two live albums, 45 singles, 38 music videos, six promotional singles, and made six guest appearances. Twain's repertoire has sold over 34 million albums in the United States alone, placing her as the top-selling female artist in country music. Moreover, with 48 million copies shipped, she is ranked as the 26th best-selling artist overall in the US, tying with Kenny G for the spot. She is also recognized as one of the best-selling music artists in history, selling over 100 million records worldwide and thus becoming the top-selling female artist in country music ever.
"Up!" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country music singer Shania Twain. It was released as the second official single from her 2002 album of the same name. The song was written by Twain and her then-husband, Robert John "Mutt" Lange. "Up!" was originally released to North American country radio on January 6, 2003. It was later released as a double A-side single with "When You Kiss Me" to exclusively the UK on November 17, 2003, and issued as the sixth and final single in Europe on March 8, 2004. At the 2004 Juno Awards, "Up!" was named Country Recording of the Year.
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"No One Needs to Know" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country music artist Shania Twain. It was released on May 15, 1996 as the sixth single from her second studio album The Woman in Me. The song was written by Twain and then husband and producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Twain composed the song while working and performing at the Deerhurst Resort in Ontario, Canada. The song was featured in the 1996 film Twister and was also included in the film's soundtrack. It was also the only single from The Woman in Me to not be commercially released; it was included as a b-side in the Australian release of "(If You're Not in It for Love) I'm Outta Here!".
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